United Kingdom Prime Minister Andy Burnham has appointed Indian-origin strategist and media executive Gautam Rangarajan to the role of ‘Expert Advisor on Structure and Process.’
“Gautam Rangarajan has been appointed as an Expert Advisor on Structure and Process.Gautam brings significant experience in corporate strategy and transformation,” a brief statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street, said.
Who is Gautam Rangarajan?
Rangarajan is a former BBC strategist and musician, and describes himself as an experienced strategist and creative content producer on his social media profile.
The senior executive has over 20 years of experience in media, creative industries and public service broadcasting. According to his LinkedIn profile, he is a “specialist in strategy development in fast-changing markets, audiences and technologies.”
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Rangarajan has a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Music from the University of Cambridge and a Non-Executive Director Diploma under the FT Board Director Programme. He started his career as a trainee producer with the BBC Radio Classical Music in October, 1993. He then went on to work as a producer with the BBC for six years with Radio 3, and was promoted to the role of executive producer in 2001.
Rangrajan received another promotion in 2003 and was made the strategy manager, later taking on the role of head of strategy at the BBC. He was promoted to the role of controller, BBC corporate strategy in May, 2009 and finally became the group director, strategy and performance in May 2013, continuing in that role till last year.
On his social media, he highlights his “expertise” in “leading large-scale change initiatives, driving organisational growth, and negotiating high-stakes policy and financial agreements.” He further says he is “adept at building relationships with complex sets of stakeholders, including government bodies and regulators, while innovating at scale and staying ahead of global media trends.” Rangarajan says he has been “recognised for guiding businesses through highly complex problems, major operational transformation and financial challenges while consistently delivering value.”
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Burnham appoints Indian-origin Kanishka Narayan as AI minister
After taking over as UK PM, Burnham had appointed an Indian-origin MP from Wales, Kanishka Narayan, as the first minister of artificial intelligence. Narayan is one of the faces who have been retained from previous PM Keir Starmer’s cabinet.
Narayan, a Labour politician from Wales, was appointed minister for AI and online safety in September 2025 under Starmer. As a junior minister in the Starmer cabinet, the India-origin MP served under technology secretary Liz Kendall.
Narayan was born in Bihar and moved to Cardiff at the age of 12, pursuing early education at Cathays High School. He completed his education at the University of Oxford and later pursued a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Stanford University, according to his LinkedIn profile.